Nuclear or radiological emergencies:
IRSN’s missions and organization
IRSN FACT SHEETS

Key figures
400 team members in theemergency pool
10-15 national emergency
exercises per year
2,000 training hours per year

September 2023
www.irsn.fr

In the event of a nuclear or radiological emergency, irrespective of its cause, IRSN’s mission is to propose to the authorities
technical, health, and medical measures to protect populations, workers, and the environment. The objective is to be able
to provide technical guidance for all possible situations occurring in France or for any event abroad that might have animpact on the national territory.
The Institute is also supporting the communication of the French government with the public, by providing didactic material
on understanding the situation and the radiation risk, and, by explaining the measurements of radiation in the environmentthat it centralizes, interprets, and makes available.
In order to be able to perform its missions, IRSN develops and maintains an operational emergency organization, which
can be activated in less than one hour 24/7. It includes:-An alert and mobilization system,
A modular emergency organization,
An assessment method,
Emergency response resources,
A pool of trained and experienced staff.

Alert and mobilization system
An on-call roster, consisting of a multidisciplinary team of 32 people renewed each week, enables for the mobilization of
the emergency organization in less than an hour. A duty manager who represents IRSN’s “permanent entry door” ensuresthat all requests regarding any potential or on-going emergency are processed. He is the sole focal point of alerts, both
external from operators and internal, for example, from the remote monitoring network.
Depending on the nature and severity of the events, IRSN’s Director General activates the Emergency Response
Organization and appoints an Emergency Director to manage the response.

Emergency Response organization
To manage an emergency situation, IRSN implements a flexible response organization which relies on a prepared threetier level. The level of the response organization is chosen according to the needs linked to the event and may be regularly
adapted according to developments in the situation. Each level systematically includes the activation of the Technical Crisis
Center (TCC) located in Fontenay-aux-Roses (near Paris) and, upon request, the support of a field deployable mobile unit
for measurements in the environment and radiological control of people, of the Institute’s fixed laboratories, of the remotemonitoring network and of representatives dispatched to assist the concerned Prefect at local level and the Interministerial
Crisis Unit (ICC) at national level.

Expertise method

Contact
Emmanuelle Mur
Tel. +33(0)1 58 35 96 71
Registered office31, av. de la Division Leclerc
92260 Fontenay-aux-Roses

Based on the data received (parameters of the affected facility, radiation measurements in the environment, meteorological
data provided by Météo-France), the TCC teams carry out an iterative assessment of the facility's situation and theconsequences for the population and the environment, as well as a prognosis of the development of the situation and thepotential consequences. This Assessment and Prognosis method is shared with nuclear operators to compare the current
understanding of the situation and the assessment of its consequences before recommendations are sent to the nationaland local authorities.
The deliverables regularly forwarded to the authorities in a proactive or reactive mode are written messages presenting
IRSN's recommendations, generally with situation maps showing the assessed consequences, thus providing technicalguidance on the radiological situation to support decision making on protection of the population.

Emergency Response resources
IRSN is a French Stateowned industrial andcommercial establishment(EPIC) the missions, status,and operation of which aredetermined by Articles L59245 to L592-49 and R592-39
to R592-61 of the French
Environment Code. IRSN isunder the joint supervision ofthe French Minister for theEnvironment, the French theMinister of Defense, and theFrench Ministers of Energy,Research, and Health.
As a public expert, IRSN
advances scientificknowledge to manage all
nuclear and radiation risks.
Through its research,
methods, and interactions
with all stakeholders, IRSN
assesses these risks andtheir consequences
independently. It thus
contributes to theirprevention, detection
and limitation of their
possible effects, in order toprotect the population andthe environment.

Technical Crisis Center
The Technical Crisis Center (TCC) is the backbone of IRSN’s emergency response organization. It is structured into
thematic units (assessment of the facility, assessment of the radiological consequences, health issues, communication,international support, logistical support) and includes software developed to quickly assess the situation, e.g. actual or
potential radioactive releases in the atmosphere, dispersion of radioactivity in the environment, and doses which are or
would be received by the population and emergency responders.
The TCC has telecommunication means including specialized links with certain operators, allowing real-time retrieval ofdata on the facility and the environment.
Remote monitoring network
The Teleray national network, devoted to the continuous monitoring of ambient gamma radiation, is an alert and monitoring
system in case of a radiological event. Over 450 stations are installed in the country. Real-time monitoring is carried out
from a remote monitoring center located at Le Vésinet (Paris metropolitan area), which is in contact with the TCC whenthe emergency response organization is activated.
Mobile unit - means for measurements in the environment
When an emergency occurs, IRSN may send experts and resources to the spot, to measure radiation in the environment.
These resources are made available to the local public authorities.
As IRSN is in charge of the national monitoring strategy and of its coordination, this unit is also tasked with centralizing,interpreting, and reporting on all measurements through a dedicated application called CRITER.
Mobile measurement resources include detectors that can be embarked on board aircrafts and helicopters for aerial
measurement and mapping of the contaminated territories which can be associated with resources on the ground(vehicles, quad bikes, pedestrian equipment). They also comprise three laboratory vehicles for the environmental sample
analyses of various matrices (water, soil, plants, etc.) as well as different equipment to be deployed in the environment(stations for remote data transmission, in situ spectrometers, air samples) on board four response vehicles.
Mobile unit - means to control people
IRSN may also send experts and resources to the location of the emergency, to measure the internal radiation
contamination of people likely to have been exposed in the population and among emergency responders. These
resources, made available to the public authorities, are embedded in the local population sorting and monitoring structures
put in place by the local authorities.
IRSN’s measurement means include four vehicles each with four measurement stations, four air transportable shelterswith ten measurement stations, and two assessment trucks. IRSN centralizes the results in an application called CRIHOM.
Fixed laboratories
IRSN can use its fixed laboratories devoted to the monitoring of environmental samples and people (radiotoxicologicalanalyses, internal contamination measurements, dosimeter analyses). These laboratories, generally tasked withmonitoring activities, have developed simplified methods for rapid assessment of radiation levels.
Emergency Response TeamThe Institute’s Emergency Response Team brings together some 400 experts who are tasked with one of the technicalpositions of the Technical Crisis Center or the mobile unit. Half of this pool participates in the weekly on-call roster.
Each team member is required to participate in at least one exercise per year as well as in training, and shall contribute tothe feedback.
Emergency exercises
IRSN participates in all national emergency exercises organized each year by the Ministry of the Interior and Safety
Authorities. It also develops technical scenarios which mock accidents in nuclear facilities and simulate the environmentalcontamination. These technical scenarios are prepared alternately with the operators. IRSN also participates ininternational exercises, notably those organized by the IAEA, in field exercises in cooperation with the fire department, andorganizes internal exercises on specific topics, such as malicious acts.